Dodge Future Cars

The current Dodge Durango has aged well in the last decade that it’s been on the market, mainly due to routine updates every few years, the most recent being in 2021. After recent reports from Automotive News suggested that the Dodge Durango – along with the Chrysler 300 – could be on verge of being discontinued, the internet went a little crazy. As it turns out, there was some truth there – the current Dodge Durango is on the verge of death, but it’s successor, if the latest reports are accurate, will fix just about the only thing that’s wrong with the current model.

With the exception of an electric Dodge Muscle car that will arrive in 2024, Stellantis has been awfully quiet regarding any performance models. It seems this might change, as Dodge is rumored to be bringing back one of the most iconic Muscle cars ever made – the Barracuda. Of course, the brand that used to sit under Dodge in the Chrysler portfolio is long gone, so if the Barracuda is making a comeback, it will be as a Dodge model. Here’s what we know so far.

It was inevitable, but it’s still a surprise. After staying mum for quite some time, Dodge has finally announced its arrival to the EV scene. As a muscle car manufacturer that caters to the purists primarily, it kind of goes against the grain to bow down to the ions. But, when the only other option is to fade away into oblivion forever, you have to succumb to it. And, that’s what Dodge did.

The company, however, kept its pride by saying that “Dodge WILL NOT sell electric cars. Dodge WILL sell American eMuscle. Well, tomato-Tomahto, but man, Dodge managed to hype this inevitability! The company announced a new EV model for 2024, and it will be a Muscle car, in case that wasn’t clear. What are we looking at? 1,000+ horses?

FCA has let the cat out of the bag, showcasing the Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat, and the Challenger SRT Super Stock. The latter, by the way is now the world’s quickest and most powerful muscle car (according to FCA, of course) while the new Charger Hellcat is the fastest and most powerful sedan you’ll find anywhere. Now, in an exclusive interview with Motor1, Tim Kuniskis, has come right out and said that electrification will play a role in the company’s future sporty cars.

More old nameplate revivals are taking place in the digital realm than in real life and in all honesty, we prefer the former because we’ve seen some iconic nameplates describing SUVs - yes, Mach-E and Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross, it’s you I’m looking at.

That said, someone imagined what a modern Dodge Ramcharger might look like and he did a pretty job, too. Sure, there’s no reason to believe that the nameplate is coming back, but the render is nonetheless soul food for the nostalgics.

The ACR name – also known as American Cup Racer – is a name that represents the very best on-track performance that Dodge can offer. It was introduced back in 1999 on the Dodge Viper and was used, briefly, on the Neon (we can argue about this another time), but has been sitting on the shelf since Dodge decided to kill the Viper off a few years ago. The Challenger, however, in a sense, helps to fill the void left by the Viper’s untimely exit, so it shouldn’t be much of a surprise that a Challenger ACR is actually on the way. The latest word on the Challenger ACR, however, hints that it could be just as much Viper as it is Challenger. Let me explain this a little further.

Like most automakers these days, Dodge is bleeding money in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic that has gripped the whole world. And like most automakers, Dodge is reopening its business in an attempt to stem the tide and bring some much-needed cash flow back to its coffers. A big part of that plan, at least according to Mopar Insiders, is to prioritize the launch of the Dodge Durango.

Ram is the only major truck maker that doesn’t have a presence in the overcrowded midsize pickup truck market. However, it looks like that’s set to change. FCA had previously announced that it will come up with a compact truck in 2022.

People have connected the dots with the latest Dakota trademark filing and presumed that the truck will be given the moniker. However, the trademark doesn’t even specify that. While both these things are true - the arrival of a new compact pickup truck in the future and FCA filing a trademark for Dakota – they may not be connected to each other at all.

Rumors about a modern Barracuda have been flying around since 2007. That’s 13 years as of 2020 and many of us have lost hope that a revival of the iconic Cuda will happen.

However, it seems that the Barracuda may indeed return for the 2021 model years as a replacement for the Dodge Challenger. And it will do so under the Dodge brand since the Plymouth marque was discontinued back in 2001. Official details about the 2021 Barracuda are still scant, but we gathered all the information there is about the modern incarnation of this muscle car legend.

It’s the year 2020 and Dodge is still selling the bonkers Durango SRT, which can still pull off 0-60 mph sprints in 4.4 seconds. It’s also America’s most powerful SUV that comes with a three-row arrangement as standard thanks to a naturally-aspirated 6.4-liter HEMI V-8.

So, does the world really need a higher-performance Durango iteration? Not really but hey, shoehorning a Hellcat V-8 inside the Durango can’t go wrong, right? Especially since the transplant would be done in the confines of Dodge’s facilities under the close supervision of the brand’s mechanics and engineers, and not by your street-corner auto shop.

Let’s not hide from the fact that both the outgoing Dodge Challenger and the Charger are old-boned cars by now. Sure, they’ve managed to carve a path of their own, and let’s also remember that the Charger is the best selling full-size sedan in the States, while the Challenger just snatched the sales crown from the Mustang and the Camaro. However, a possible Easter egg might suggest that they might be getting a new generation in 2023.

It first ruled the drag strip, and now it might be time to rule the race circuit. Or at least aim to rule it, provided the recent reports are true. Indeed, we’re talking about the Dodge Challenger, a not-that-new-anymore car that’s been abiding by the Frank Sinatra “I did it my way” credo, which is rumored to receive the ACR badge once wore by the mighty yet now-defunct Dodge Viper.

You would think that a car as iconic as the Dodge Challenger would be immune to the whimsical minds of those who render “what-if” vehicles for a pastime. But as is often the case in the auto industry, perception isn’t always reality. No car is immune to the creativity of renderers, especially when there’s an opportunity to present Dodge’s iconic muscle car in a whole new light, like, say, an SUV. This is the Dodge Challenger SUV, folks, as presented by our mates over at Kolesa.ru. It’s probably not what you expected, but the rendering is interesting, to say the least. Heaven forbid that Dodge sees this and decides that it wants to build. A rendering of a Dodge Challenger SUV is fine; building a real one is not. Don’t fall to the temptation, Dodge!

Introduced in 2008 on an already old platform borrowed from Mercedes-Benz, the current Dodge Challenger is more than just a little long in the tooth. However, thanks to high-performance versions like the Hellcat and the Demon, the Challenger remained relevant and even became the second best-selling sports coupe in the U.S., behind the Ford Mustang but ahead of the much newer Chevrolet Camaro. A redesign is underway, and FCA is preparing big changes for the nameplate.

Still mourning the Dodge Viper, the cool, all-American, V-10 supercar that was discontinued in 2017? Well, it’s been just a few months since Dodge halted production and word has it FCA might bring it back soon. According to Car and Driver, a "new Viper is happening" and it could arrive in production form in late 2020. But it won’t be the same.

The Charger isn’t exactly as old as the senior-citizen Challenger (now 10 years old) but it has been on the market since 2011, making it due for a generational shift. We’ll have to wait a little longer for that, but to help keep the mob at bay, Dodge is ushering in a much-needed facelift for 2019. Little is known at this point but as you can see from the teaser image, it’s slated to get a new face. High performance models like the SRT Hellcat, for example, will get an all-new grille and will even get that integrated intake. The grille is slimmed down considerably compared to the 2018 model and it looks like the front fascia may actually be a bit sportier.

Outside of what we can see in this photo, however, there’s little more to be said without going into excessive speculation. We don’t even know if the Charger will get that same aggressive hood scoop from the Challenger update. We do know that a full design is underway for both the Challenger and Charger, however. And, to make things even better, the wait is due to a major platform shift that will have the Challenger and Charger brothers riding on the same platform as the Maserati Ghibli.

That could be big news for these two reborn but aging muscle cars. Stick around for updates about the 2019 facelift and be sure to check out our full review of each model at the links below!

We’re not sure if there are going to be any other significant updates to the Challenger Hellcat for 2019, but Dodge has found it fitting to tease a new hood scoop for 2019 models. There’s no other news to report, but Dodge does say that the scoop is fully functional and claims that it harkens back to the muscle car days of the ‘60s and ‘70s. It should provide more air flow to the engine, however, so we might be lucky enough to see a bump in power for 2019 but it’s probably best not to hold your breath for the time being.

With that in mind, let us just point out that Dodge is quite literally polishing a turd at this point. Not that the Challenger Hellcat isn’t awesome, because it is, but the Challenger itself has soldiered on since 2008 and by the time the 2019 model year rolls around, it will be 11 years old. That makes the Challenger – Hellcat or not – a senior citizen that’s just begging to for life to come to an end. How’s life going for the Challenger? It’s taking forever. Let’s just hope that Dodge will finally introduce a next-gen model by the turn of the decade. Imagine how great the Hellcat can be on a new platform with all of the latest technology inside and under the metal.